Westchester County Deafness Injury

As far as workplace injuries go, hearing loss is one of the most difficult. Not only does it affect your ability to work properly, in affects your home life, putting a barrier between you and the outside world. A hearing loss injury can happen various ways. A lengthy exposure to a constant, high-pitched sound can lead to hearing loss, as well as a sudden explosive sound. Damage to your hearing can also occur as the result of a head injury, including a substantial blow the head, or brain injury. Furthermore, if you are involved in a construction accident or suffer a fall, your hearing can be permanently damaged. If you have suffered a serious injury that has affected your ability to hear, you are likely dealing with high medical costs, inability to work, rehabilitation and emotional suffering. It is important that you immediately contact a Westchester County deafness attorney who will review the details of your case and help you receive the compensation to which you are entitled.

If your injury occurred at work, be aware that your employer should be monitoring the sound level of your work environment and taking corrective measures as needed to prevent any injury. If the sound levels at your jobsite are unacceptable your employer should be providing hearing protection at a minimum. If you have been injured you may be entitled to workers' compensation benefits. Depending on how you were injured at work, you may also be entitled to damages above the compensation offered by workers' compensation. Industries where workers are a risk of hearing loss injuries include:

• Working in a factory
• Construction
• Auto racing
• Aviation accident

Loss of hearing is due to serious damage that has occurred to the inner ear. Sometimes this damage will be temporary and hearing will be partially restored and other times it is permanent. Symptoms can include hearing being muffled, the sensation of ringing in the ears, experiencing difficulty hearing speech, or simply not hearing certain sounds at all. If your injury was due to an accident that was caused by the negligence of another party, it is important to speak with us for legal advice. You could be entitled to receive just compensation for your injuries including medical expenses, rehabilitation, loss of income from work and more.

Sound levels are measure by decibel, and it is surprising how little it takes to cause Deafness. It is generally thought that any noise over 85 decibels has the potential to damage your hearing. Many household appliances however, have a decibel level of over 100. Inner ear damage causing Deafness occurs with sound over 120 decibels, however a simple power tool creates 140 decibels or more. It is easy to see how this type of injury can occur.

In some cases damage to the ear will cause temporary hearing loss while in other cases the hearing loss will be profound and permanent. Symptoms that you have an ear injury include:

• Pain in the ear
• Ringing in the ear
• Buzzing sound in the ear
• Muffled hearing
• Itching or irritation in the ear
• Fluid leaking from the ear
• Dizziness
• Poor balance

An injured victim who loses some or all of the ability to hear will incur considerable medical expenses from medical treatment and assistive technology. Added to that, the victim may miss a lot of work while recovering, or may not be able to return to work at all. Through a personal injury lawsuit the person whose negligence resulted in the victim's loss of hearing could be force to compensate the victim for his or her losses. The victim may be able to recover past medical expenses as well as future expenses. A personal injury lawsuit may also result in the victim receiving compensation for lost wages as well as for loss of future earning capacity. Becoming deaf is a physically, emotionally and psychologically difficult experience. Therefore, the victim may also sue for pain and suffering.

If you or a loved one was injured in an accident that left you with a temporary or permanent hearing loss, you should contact an experienced attorney who understands the legal issues associated with personal injury cases. The staff at the Law Offices of Stephen Bilkis & Associates is experienced in handling personal injury cases stemming from auto, truck, motorcycle, boat, and construction accidents. Contact us at 800.696.9529 to schedule a free, no obligation consultation regarding your case. We represent clients in the following locations: the Bronx, Brooklyn, Long Island, Manhattan, Nassau County, Queens, Staten Island, Suffolk County and Westchester County.